A/HRC/28/3 the implementation of a moratorium. OHCHR launched a publication on the topic during a high-level panel discussion at the sixty-ninth session of the General Assembly, 14 with the participation of the Heads of State of Mongolia and Tunisia, the Prime Minister of Italy and a representative of the President of Benin. OHCHR furthermore published a report on the death penalty in Iraq.15 54. OHCHR advocated for respect for international human rights standards in cases of individuals facing the death penalty and for the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which contributed to positive developments: Myanmar announced the presidential commutation of all death sentences to life imprisonment; the judiciary in India continued to commute death sentences to lesser punishments; Thailand announced a policy on abolition; Equatorial Guinea introduced a temporary moratorium; Nigeria reconfirmed continuation of the federal moratorium; the United States of America commenced an executive review of execution procedures; Afghanistan announced a review of all death penalty cases; and El Salvador, Gabon and Poland ratified or acceded to the Second Optional Protocol. 55. OHCHR supported the design, establishment and functioning of transitional justice processes from a human rights perspective in more than 25 States. It provided assistance to the truth commissions in Tunisia and Côte d’Ivoire, and prepared commentaries on related legislation in Nepal and Mali. The focus remained on ensuring that the rights of victims are central in these processes and that gender considerations are taken into account. These concerns are reflected in the analytical study focusing on gender-based and sexual violence in relation to transitional justice.16 Together with UN-Women, OHCHR led the process of drafting the guidance note of the Secretary-General on reparations for conflict-related sexual violence.17 56. OHCHR contributed to strengthening national capacities to protect victims and witnesses of serious crimes under international law. It deployed an international expert to Uganda and the Sudan (Darfur) to support the authorities in the establishment of national witness protection programmes and measures. 57. OHCHR advised States – including Grenada, Liberia, Myanmar, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago and Tunisia – in the revision of their Constitution or in the development of a new one, to ensure compliance with the highest standards of promotion and protection of human rights. 58. Supporting efforts to strengthen the administration of justice remains a priority for OHCHR, focusing on the independence of the judiciary and the protection of persons deprived of their liberty. OHCHR supported the Ombudsman Commission of Papua New Guinea to strengthen its monitoring of places of detention; in Malaysia, it supported the national human rights commission in its work on detention, deaths in custody and accountability of the police; in Mozambique, the national human rights institution conducted its first systematic monitoring of prisons and detention centre thanks to capacitybuilding conducted by the OHCHR Regional Office for Southern Africa; in Kazakhstan, the OHCHR Regional Office for Central Asia provided technical advice to the newly 14 15 16 17 Available at www.ohchr.org/Lists/MeetingsNY/Attachments/27/moving_away_from_death_penalt y_web.pdf. Available from www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/IQ/UNAMI_HRO_DP_1Oct2014.pdf. A/HRC/27/21. Available at www.ohchr.org/Documents/Press/GuidanceNoteReparationsJune2014.pdf. 11